Medical Spa
A medical spa is a combination or a hybrid between a medical clinic and a day spa that operates under the supervision of medical doctor.
Medical spas can treat facial conditions like brown spots, redness, broken capillaries that cannot be treated at all or as effectively by a traditional esthetician. They also specialize in laser hair removal and Botox and fillers. Medical spa menus vary, but you can usually get medical spa treatments like laser treatments , IPL (intense pulsed light) treatments, microdermabrasion, photofacials, injectables like Botox and fillers, peels and skin tightening.
Medical spas tend to have a more clinical atmosphere, so they aren't always the first choice for relaxing, but many do also offer massage and body treatments. Some medical spas also have a wellness focus and include services like acupuncture, nutritional counseling and naturopathic doctor consultations.
One of the biggest questions in choosing a medical spa is to find out whether the doctor is actually on the premises supervising operations and doing treatments, or whether he has lent his name to someone else's enterprise and has relatively little involvement. It's importnat to find out the qualifications of the people doing the services and how long they've been doing them.
Prices for medical spa treatment like laser and skin tightening and photo-facials tend to be high because the equipment itself it epensive. You may also want to research the type of equipment they use for the treatment you're interested in, because it's a complex field and the technology is always changing. You really want the most up-to-date, least painful technologies for procedures like skin tightening.
Sometimes cosmetic surgeons open medical spas as an adjunct to their practice, so they can sell more services to women who are working on their appearance. One caution here is that you may give more credence to a doctor's recommendations that you get microdermabrasion or laser treatments. Don't lose your critical judgement just because a doctor is recommending a treatment.
The best approach is to identify what is bothering you and then see what they recommend to treat it. Doing independent research is good because the medical spa will want to use the machine they have, and it's important to know if it's the best choice for you.
Regulations vary from state to state. A medical doctor generally has to oversee the procedures performed in a medical spa, but this does not mean he is always on the premises.
